1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a female side connector for high current used for an operation such as an IC package test. More particularly, the present invention relates to a female side connector for high current to which or from which a conductor member or a card edge pad as a male side connector can be inserted or disengaged without requiring a large force.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a reliability test for an IC package or the like, a number of sockets respectively mounting thereon a number of IC packages are provided on a test board to be subjected to the test. For example, as shown in FIG. 19, in order to connect a burn-in test board, on which a number of sockets respectively sockets mounting thereon a number of IC packages (not shown) are arranged, to an external power source, the card edge 2 as a male side connector having concentrated external terminals is provided at the side of the test board 1. This card edge 2 is connected to an external power source via the female side connector 3. Even if a small amount of current is flowed in a IC package itself to be tested, the entire test board requires a current having an amount multiplied by the number of IC packages to be mounted, thus allowing a relatively high current to pass through the connector 3.
Such a female side connector, through which a high current flows, has been conventionally known, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-056910, a microfilm of Japanese Utility Model Application No. 59-69384(1984) (Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 60-181870(1985)), and Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 3006448, for example. In such a female side connector, it has been known to be able to pass a larger current therethrough if the conductor part has a larger cross section and the width or the number of electric contact parts is increased, in view of the conductor resistance and the contact resistance.
Recently, with an increased number of IC packages mounted on a test board via the IC socket and a larger size and a more complicated structure of the IC package itself, a test board has been required to have therein a larger current (e.g., current of 200 to 2000 amperes).
In order to allow such a high current to flow, the female connectors disclosed in the above Patent References have a limitation. For example, in the female side connector 1 disclosed in Patent Reference No. 2002-056910, considering the conductor resistance and the contact resistance as described above, the width, height, and length of the female side connector inevitably become larger and also the manufacture of the connector becomes more difficult, thus increasing the manufacturing cost. Since the elastic force of contacts in the female side connector becomes too strong, the female side connector also requires a card edge as a male connector to be engaged or disengaged with a large force. As a result, the card edge is difficult to be engaged or disengaged, the card edge is damaged, and the pad part of the card edge may be broken in some cases.